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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  PUBLICATIONS 
UNIVERSITY    EXTENSION 


SYLLABUS 


History  and  Historians 


H.   MORSE   STEPHENS 


i 


BERKELEY:   THE   UNIVERSITY   PRESS 
SEPTEMBER.   1905 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA   PUBLICATIONS 
UNIVERSITY  EXTENSION 


SYLLABUS 

OF  A 

Course  of  Twelve  Lectures 

ON 

History  and  Historians 


BY 

H.  MORSE  STEPHENS 


Berkeley:  the  university  press 
september,  1905 


)^y/'_/  /^-^^w- 


LIST  OF  LECTURES. 


1.  — History  in  Tribal  Songs  and  Race  Epics:    Homer. 

2. — The  Greek  Historians:    Herodotus  and  Thucydides. 

3.-  -The  Roman  Historians:    Livy  and  Tacitus. 

4. — The  Medieval  Chroniclers:  the  Venerable  Bede,  Geoffrey  of 
Monmouth  and  Froissart. 

5. — History  as  Literature:  the  Revival  of  Learning;  Machiavelli ; 
the  Seventeenth  Century,  Raleigh  and  Hobbes;  the  Eighteenth 
Century,  Voltaire  and  Hume. 

6. — The  First  of  Modern  Historians:    Edward  Gibbon. 

7.— The  Beginnings  of  Scientific  History:  Niebuhr,  Ranke  and 
Mignet;   the  publication  of  documents. 

8. — The  Philosophic  Historians:   Guizot,  Grote  and  Carlyle. 

9.— The  Political  Historians:  Alison,  Hallam,  Macaulay,  Thiers, 
Droysen  and  Bancroft. 

10.— The  Nationalist  Historians:  Herculano,  Palacky,  Martin, 
Green  and  Treitschke. 

11.— The  Romantic  Historians:  Lamartine,  Michelet,  Froude, 
Motley,  Prescott,  and  Parkman ;  the  place  of  Historical 
Fiction :   Scott  and  Dumas. 

12.— The  Modern  Scientific  Historians;  Fustel  de  Coulanges„ 
Aulard,  Stubbs,  Gardiner,  Lea  and  Henry  Adams. 


397518 


HISTORY  AND   HISTORIANS. 


LECTURE  ONE. 

History  in  Tribal  Songs  and  Race  Epics :  Homer. 

History  is  the  narrative  of  the  past. 

Everything  that  bears  a  trace  of  the  past  is  material 
for  history. 

Institutions,  battle-fields,  buildings,  are  material  for  his- 
tory as  much  as  inscribed  monuments,  written  charters, 
or  printed  documents. 

Narrative  history  is  founded  upon  all  accessible  mate- 
rial, and  the  amount  of  research  in  assembling  and  studying 
this  material,  and  the  critical  use  made  of  it  are  the  chief 
tests  of  a  modern  historian. 

The  earliest  narrative  history  as  opposed  to  material 
for  history  is  to  be  found  in  tribal  songs  and  race  epics. 

Since  these  were  not  committed  to  writing  until  long 
after  their  composition  they  cannot  be  regarded  as  authen- 
tic narratives  of  events  as  they  occurred,  but  they  may  con- 
tain memories  of  events  and  of  individuals  exaggerated  in 
passing  from  mouth  to  mouth  through  a  series  of  genera- 
tions. 

The  amount  of  historical  material  contained  in  tribal 
songs  and  epics  can  be  tested  by  the  more  permanent  traces 
of  the  past  and  estimated  by  comparative  criticism. 

The  natural  growth  of  legend  distorts  the  truth  in  the 
description  of  events,  but  the  social  customs  and  attitude 
of  mind  of  savage  races  can  be  deduced  from  primitive 
songs  and  poems. 

Sometimes  the  early  tribal  songs  have  been  preserved, 
as  in  the  Norse  Eddas,  sometimes  they  have  been  worked 


np  into  I'ace  epics,  as  in  the  Homeric  poems,  the  Kalevala, 
and  the  Chanson  de  Roland. 

The  Homeric  epics:  the  probable  method  of  their  com- 
position; their  mythology;  their  legendary  heroes;  their 
description  of  social  life  and  customs;  their  picture  of 
primitive  society;  possible  amount  of  truth  embodied  in 
their  narrative  of  events. 

The  ' '  Iliad ' ' :  the  story  of  the  war  of  the  Greeks  against 
Troy;  light  thrown  upon  the  "Iliad"  by  the  work  of  the 
archaeologists,  especially  by  Schliemann:  modern  views  of 
the  historical  value  of  the  "Iliad." 

The  "Odyssey":  its  resemblance  to  and  contrast  with 
the  "Iliad;"  while  the  "Iliad"  is  the  epic  of  war,  the 
' '  Odyssey ' '  is  the  epic  of  travel ;  its  historical  value ;  con- 
clusions drawn  from  the  story  of  the  Cyclops. 

Race  epics  of  other  races:  the  two  Sanskrit  epics  of 
India,  the  "  Mahabharata, "  and  the  "Ramayana";  amount 
of  historical  evidence  as  to  past  events  and  past  conditions 
of  life  contained  in  them. 

The  early  Celtic  literature ;  the  Irish  romances  or  sagas ; 
the  Cuchulainn  cycle;  the  Ossianic  cycle:  the  Welsh  "Ma- 
binogion ' ' ;  the  Arthurian  legend. 

The  early  Teutonic  literature;  the  " Nibelungenlied. " 

The  Norse  songs:  contrast  between  the  form  in  which 
they  have  descended  to  us  and  that  of  the  Homeric  and 
Sanskrit  epics;  probable  date  and  place  of  the  composition 
of  the  Eddas :  their  value ;  the  Norse  sagas. 

The  Finnish  epic,  the  "Kalevala":  its  composition  in 
the  eighteenth  century  from  tribal  songs;  comparison  with 
Macpherson's  "Ossian,"  also  published  in  the  eighteenth 
century ;  influence  of  its  form  upon  Longfellow 's  ' '  Hia- 
watha." 

The  best  instance  of  the  making  of  an  epic  out  of  leg- 
endary songs  built  around  an  event  is  to  be  found  in  the 
"Chanson  de  Roland":  this  poem,  probably  written  in  the 
eleventh  century,  purports  to  describe  the  real  fight  at 
Roncesvalles  in  the  year  778,  in  which  Roland  was  killed: 


its  leg'end  of  Charlemagne;  its  value  as  an  authority  on 
the  ideas  of  life  of  the  eleventh  century;  light  thrown  by 
the  study  of  the  "Chanson  de  Roland"  upon  the  probable 
construction  of  race  epiCvS. 

The  race  epics  as  history:  blind  credulity  followed  by 
absolute  skepticism ;  the  modern  view  of  their  value  as  con- 
taining evidences  of  the  past. 

BOOKS  RECOMMENDED. 
The  most  useful  translations  of  Homer  into  English  prose  are, 
of  the  ''Iliad,"  by  Andrew  Lang,  W.  Leaf,  and  E.  Myers,  1883, 
and  of  the  "Odyssey,"  by  Andrew  Tjang  and  W.  Leaf,  1889,  and 
by  G.  H.  Palmer,  1891;  but  Lord  Derby's  blank  verse  translation 
of  the  Iliad,  and  Worsley's  translation  of  the  Odyssey  into  Spense- 
rian A'erse,  give  a  fair  idea  of  the  original;  Pope's  translations 
fail  to  give  the  spirit  of  Homer.  A  good  account  of  the  Sanskrit 
epics  is  contained  in  J.  C.  Oman's  ''The  Great  Indian  Epics,"  1894, 
and  condensed  versions  of  them  by  R.  C.  Dutt  have  been  published 
in  the  Temple  Classics.  The  best  edition  of  the  Eddas  is  printed 
with  a  translation  into  English  by  G.  Vigfusson  and  F.  York  Powell 
in  their  "Corpus  Poeticum  Boreale, "  1883,  but  an  idea  of  their 
spirit  can  be  found  in  some  of  the  poems  of  William  Morris,  notably 
in  his  ' '  Story  of  Sigurd  the  Volsung. ' '  For  the  Finnish  epic  see 
J.  M.  Crawford  "The  Kalevala,  the  Epic  Poem  of  Finland,"  1889. 
There  is  no  good  translation  of  the  "Chanson  de  Eoland"  into 
English;  the  best  edition  with  a  translation  into  modern  French  is  by 
Leon  Gautier,  1890. 


LECTURE  TWO. 

The  Greek  Historians:  Herodotus  and  Thucydides. 

The  attitude  of  the  Greeks  towards  history,  after  Greek 
literature  in  prose  came  into  being,  is  indicated  by  their 
placing  as  one  of  the  nine  Muses,  Clio,  the  Muse  of  History. 

They  did  not  regard  history  as  the  simple^iarration  of 
what  had  happened  in  the  past,  but  rather  as  an  artistic 
arrangement  of  a  narrative  of  events. 

Herodotus,  (born  B.C.  484;  died  B.C.  402),  has  been 
called  the  Father  of  History ;  his  idea  was  to  tell  the  story 


of  the  struggle  of  the  Greeks  against  the  power  of  Persia; 
with  this  in  view  he  described  the  Asiatic  peoples  and  then 
gave  the  details  of  the  struggle ;  his  aim  was  the  exaltation 
of  Greek  spirit  by  showing  what  had  been  achieved. 

Comparison  between  the  Homeric  poems  and  Herodotus ; 
their  treatment  of  legends;  their  skill  in  simple  narration 
and  description. 

The  credulity  and  good  faith  of  Herodotus;  confirma- 
tion of  many  of  his  stories  by  modern  research  and  expla- 
nation of  others  by  modern  criticism;  Herodotus  told  the 
truth  as  he  saw  it,  and  reported  in  good  faith  tales  told 
to  him;  his  exaggerations,  as  for  instance  in  the  number 
of  the  soldiers  in  the  invading  Persian  army  of  Xerxes,  due 
to  a  natural  desire  to  increase  the  fame  of  the  Greeks  and 
not  to  wilful  mendacity. 

The  style  of  Herodotus :  its  simplicity ;  he  is  the  first 
great  story  teller. 

The  importance  of  Herodotus :  his  influence  upon  suc- 
ceeding historians ;  his  influence  upon  contemporary  Greece ; 
the  vast  importance  of  his  subject,  the  first  recorded  strug- 
gle between  Europe  and  Asia. 

Thucydides,  (B.C.  471-400),  the  Athenian  historian: 
contrast  with  Herodotus. 

The  literature  of  Athens;  its  importance  in  the  fifth 
century  B.C. ;  the  Age  of  Pericles. 

Thucydides 's  "History  of  the  Peloponnesian  War"  the 
first  history  of  contemporary  events  and  the  classical  type 
of  such  histories;  inevitable  errors  in  history  by  contem- 
poraries, due  to  lack  of  material  and  false  perspective; 
especially  erroneous  when  such  history  is  written  by  one 
who  played  a  part  in  the  events  he  describes,  as  was  the 
case  with  Thucydides;  merits  and  defects  common  to  all 
contemporary  histories;  special  merits  and  defects  of 
Thucydides;  his  aim  was  not  merely  to  describe  the  war 
but  to  explain  why  Athens  was  defeated. 

The  style  of  Thucydides :  his  speeches  of  statesmen  antl 
generals ;  his  defense  of  his  practice. 


The  importance  of  Thncydides  and  his  influence  upon 
subsequent  writers;  danger  of  the  precedent  he  set,  which 
led  later  writers  to  believe  it  necessary  to  prove  a  thesis  in 
their  narration  of  events. 

Other  Greek  historians:  Xenophon  (B.C.  445-355); 
his  "Anabasis"  and  "Hellenica;"  Polybius  (B.C.  210- 
128)  ;  Plutarch  (A.D.  50-120). 

BOOKS  RECOMMENDED. 

The  best  edition  of  Herodotus  for  English  readers  was  published 
by  Eawlinson  in  1858,  but  it  needs  to  be  brought  up  to  date;  there 
are  many  translations  of  varying  merit.  The  best  translation  of 
Thucydides  is  by  Benjamin  Jowett,  1881,  The  best  translation  into 
English  of  Polybius  is  by-  E.  S.  Shuckburgh,  1889,  and  of  Plutarch 
by  Clough,  1859. 


LECTURE  THREE. 

The  Roman  Historians :  Livy  and  Tacitus. 

The  influence  of  the  Greek  historians  upon  the  Roman 
writers. 

Nature  of  the  material  accessible  to  the  Roman  histo- 
rians :  the  annals ;  family  records ;  state  documents. 

Distinction  between  the  authenticity  of  material  for  the 
earlier  and  the  later  history  of  Rome :  the  legendary  mate- 
rial ;  modern  efforts  to  appreciate  this  material ;  the  views 
of  Niebuhr;  importance  of  this  discussion  in  estimating 
the  value  of  tradition  in  constructing  the  history  of  early 
periods;  attempt  to  reconstruct  early  tribal  songs;  iMacau- 
lay's  introduction  to  his  ''Lays  of  Ancient  Rome;"  Sir 
G.  C.  Lewis  "On  the  Credibility  of  Early  Roman  History." 

The  Roman  writers  treated  these  legends  as  contribut- 
ing to  prove  the  antiquity  of  Rome  and  thus  increasing 
her  glory;  in  poetry  Virgil  does  this  in  his  "Aeneid, "  the 
epic  of  empire. 

Livy  (B.C.  59-A.D.  17),  undertook  to  tell  in  prose  the 
glories  of  Rome;  the  difference  between  the  civic  and  na- 


10 

tional  patriotism  of  the  Romans  as  shown  in  Virgil  and 
Liv}^  and  the  race  patriotism  of  the  Greeks  as  shown  in 
Herodotus. 

The  arrangement  of  Livy's  history  of  Rome  into  four- 
teen decades ;  only  35  books  out  of  140  are  extant ;  his 
perspective. 

The  style  of  Livy;  its  simplicity  compared  and  con- 
trasted with  that  of  Herodotus ;  his  method  compared  with 
that  of  the  writers  of  race  epics;  the  speeches  of  generals 
and  statesmen ;  their  dramatic  quality ;  his  reports  of  omens 
and  early  Roman  superstitions;  his  constant  desire  to  mag- 
nify the  deeds  of  early  Roman  heroes;  the  influence  of 
Livy's  works  upon  the  later  writing  of  history  in  Europe 
after  the  discovery  of  them  during  the  Revival  of  Learning. 

Tacitus  (A.D.  54-117),  the  other  leading  Roman  his- 
torian, illustrates  another  phase  in  the  writing  of  history; 
artificiality  of  his  style  and  method. 

The  works  of  Tacitus;  the  "Annals"  and  the  "His- 
tories" deal  with  the  period  of  the  Roman  empire,  and 
Tacitus  therefore  had  no  lack  of  material;  he  was  not  like 
Livy  desirous  of  telling  the  Avhole  history  of  Rome,  but 
rather  of  criticizing  the  early  Roman  emperors ;  the  minor 
works  of  Tacitus;  the  "Agricola,"  the  life  of  his  father- 
in-law,  the  most  important  governor  of  Britain,  and  the 
"Germania,"  an  account  of  the  manners  and  customs  of 
the  German  tribes. 

The  political  animus  of  Tacitus;  he  represents  the 
school  of  thought  with  regard  to  the  Roman  empire  during 
the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Trajan ;  his  aim  not  so  much  to 
tell  the  truth  as  to  advocate  certain  political  views;  criti- 
cism of  his  account  of  the  Emperor  Tiberius;  the  view 
suggested  that  his  "Germania"  was  not  so  much  a  true 
account  of  German  life  as  an  implied  satire  on  Roman 
conditions. 

The  style  of  Tacitus :  he  belonged  to  the  rhetoricians ; 
his  attitude  of  mind  compared  with  that  of  the  satirists, 
like  Juvenal ;  importance  of  Tacitus  as  the  first  type  of  the 


11 

satirical  historian  with  his  eyes  fixed  on  the  present,  while 
telling-  the  story  oi"  the  past. 

Other  Roman  historians:  Sallust  (B.C.  86-34);  his 
"Conspiracy  of  Catiline"  and  "Jugnrthan  War;"  Sueto- 
nius (A.D.  65-125)  ;  his  "Lives  of  the  Caesars." 

Importance  of  the  "Commentaries"  of  Julius  Caesar  as 
material  for  history. 

BOOKS  KECOMMENDED. 
There  are  many  translations  of  Livy,  but  none  of  particular  merit; 
J.  R.  Seeley's  edition  of  the  first  book  contains  a  note-worthy  intro- 
duction. The  best  translations  of  the  four  historical  works  of  Tacitus 
into  English  are  by  A.  J.  Church  and  W.  J.  Brodribb.  There  are 
three  excellent  essays  in  French  on  the  historical  and  literary  value 
of  Livy  by  H.  Taine,  of  Tacitus  by  Gaston  Boissier,  and  of  Sueto- 
nius by  A.  Mace. 


LECTURE   FOUR. 

The  Medieval  Chroniclers:  the  Venerable  Bede, 
Geoffrey  of  Monmouth,  and  Froissart. 

During"  the  Middle  Ages,  after  the  invasions  of  the  bar- 
barians and  the  overthrow  of  the  Western  Empire,  the 
classical  models  of  historical  writing  were  neglected  in 
Western  Europe,  and  the  knowledge  of  the  Greek  and  Ro- 
man conceptions  of  history  was  lost. 

Under  the  Eastern  or  Byzantine  Empire  the  writing  of 
history  along  classical  lines  continued  but  showed  a  great 
falling  off  both  in  matter  and  style;  the  writings  of  Pi'O- 
copius  (500-565)  and  the  Princess  Anna  Comnena  (1083- 
1148). 

The  medieval  annalists  and  chroniclers:  distinction  be- 
tween these  two  groups,  the  annalists  jotting  down  yearly 
what  they  knew  or  heard  of  contemporary  events,  and  the 
chroniclers  attempting  to  weave  their  story  into  a  regidar 
record ;  this  work  done  in  the  scriptoria  of  the  monasteries, 
where  alone  learning  survived. 


The  monastic  annalists  and  chroniclers  wrote  in  Latin, 
not  in  the  classical  Latin  of  the  Roman  historians,  but  in 
the  medieval  development  of  the  language;  their  style  is 
generally  simple  and  readable,  but  is  not  literary;  the 
annalists  bareJy  state  events  as  they  occur  and  the  chron- 
iclers comment  piously  upon  them. 

The  most  famous  of  the  early  writers  of  the  Middle 
Ages  is  the  Venerable  Bede  (675-735)  ;  his  life  as  a  North- 
umbrian monk  at  Jarrow;  his  "Ecclesiastical  History  of 
the  English  People;"  its  aim  to  show  the  benefits  brought 
about  by  the  conversion  of  the  people  of  England  to  Chris- 
tianity; his  natural  bias;  his  materials;  his  style,  based 
mainly  upon  that  of  the  Latin  Fathers  of  the  Church ;  value 
of  Bede's  work. 

The  English  or  Anglo-Saxon  Chronicle;  its  composition 
and  value. 

The  medieval  chroniclers  of  England  after  the  Norman 
conquest. 

The  most  interesting  of  them  was  Geoffrey  of  Mon- 
mouth, Bishop  of  St.  Asaph  (1100-1154)  :  his  importance 
in  making  and  consolidating  English  traditions ;  the  Arthu- 
rian legend ;  the  stories  of  Brut,  King  Lear,  etc. ;  the  aim 
of  Geoffrey  to  exaggerate  the  antiquity  of  the  English 
people  by  giving  them  a  legendary  origin  and  a  long  record 
of  wonderful  heroes. 

Other  English  chroniclers:  William  of  Malmesbury 
(1090-1143)  and  his  efforts  to  bring  out  the  importance 
of  the  Church;  Giraldus  Cambrensis  (1160-1220)  ;  his  ac- 
count of  the  conquest  of  Ireland  by  Henry  II;  Matthew 
Paris  (1200-1259);  his  literary  style;  his  account  of  the 
reign  of  Henry  III  from  contemporary  information  given 
to  him  by  both  sides  in  the  political  struggle. 

The  writings  of  these  English  chroniclers  typical  of 
the  work  done  in  writing  history  throughout  Western  Eu- 
rope during  the  Middle  Ages. 

Prom  the  twelfth  century  chronicles  begin  also  to  be 
written  in  the  vernacular  languages  that  were  coming  intc 


13 

existence;  national  traditions  and  legends  first  appear  in 
the  vernacular  songs  and  poems,  like  the  "Chanson  de 
Roland"  and  the  "Roman  de  Ron;"  these  are  followed  by 
chronicles  in  prose. 

Froissart  (1337-1410)  may  be  taken  as  a  typical  chron- 
icler in  the  vernacular;  he  is  the  chronicler  of  chivalry  and 
expounds  its  ideas  in  his  account  of  the  wars  waged  by 
Edward  III  of  England  in  France;  his  style. 

For  the  next  century  may  be  mentioned  Philippe  de 
Comines  (1436-1509),  whose  memoirs  give  an  account  by 
a  contemporary  of  the  relations  between  Louis  XI  of  France 
and  Charles  the  Bold  of  Burgundy. 

Had  it  not  been  for  the  Revival  of  Learning  ther(? 
might  have  grown  from  the  monastic  and  the  vernacular 
chroniclers  an  independent  Western  European  method  of 
conceiving  and  writing  history,  but  the  discovery  and  study 
of  the  famous  models  of  Greek  and  Roman  history  caused 
imitations  of  them  to  take  the  place  of  natural  development. 

BOOKS  EECOMMENDED. 
The   best   edition   of   Bede   is   edited   by   Plummer,    1896.      There 
are  excellent  translations  of  Bede  and  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  in  the 
Temple  Classics.     There  are  many  editions  and  translations  of  Frois- 
sart and  Philippe  de  Comines. 


LECTURE   FIVE. 

History  as  Literature:  the  Revival  of  Learning; 
Maehiavelli ;  the  Seventeenth  Century,  Raleigh 
and  Hobbes;  the  Eighteenth  Century,  Voltaire 
and  Hume. 

The  Revival  of  Learning-  gave  to  Western  Europe  a 
knowledge  of  the  historians  of  Greece  and  Rome,  and  the 
writing  of  history  was  thenceforward  regarded  from  the 
literary  standpoint;  the  style  of  the  writer  was  considered 
more  than  his  matter;  careful  students  of  materials  for 
historv  were   regarded   as  mere  antiquarians;   it  was   re- 


14 

garded  as  the  function  of  the  historian  to  write  eloquently 
and  to  arrange  his  history  so  as  to  bring  out  political  or 
moral  lessons. 

Machiavelli  (1469-1527)  may  be  taken  as  the  type  of 
the  first  group  of  writers  influenced  by  the  classical  idea 
and  style;  in  his  "Florentine  History"  and  in  his  "Dis- 
courses upon  Livy"  he  shows  the  conviction  that  the  histo- 
rian's business  is  not  to  tell  the  truth  but  to  inculcate 
politic^al  lessons. 

Joao  de  Barros  (1496-1570)  may  be  taken  as  the  type 
of  historian  dealing  with  contemporary  events  under  the 
influence  of  classical  models;  in  his  "Da  Asia"  he  tells  in 
decades,  after  Livy 's  manner,  the  story  of  the  deeds  of  the 
Portuguese  in  Asia. 

The  Reformation  gave  rise  to  much  controversial  his- 
tory; the  work  of  the  Magdeburg  Centuriators  (1559- 
1574);  Mathias  Flacius  Illyricus  (1520-1575);  the  "An- 
nales  Ecclesiastici"  of  Cardinal  Baronius  (1538-1607). 

The  influence  of  classical  models  may  be  seen  through- 
out the  historical  writings  of  the  seventeenth  century;  in 
England,  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  (1552-1616)  wrote  while  in 
prison  his  "History  of  the  World"  intended  to  teach  polit- 
i^a]_2essons  and  not  to  record  events,  while  Hobbes,  the 
philosopher,  (1588-1679)  wrote  an  imitation  of  Thucydides 
in  his  "Behemoth,"  or  "Historic  of  the  Civil  Warres  of 
England;"  in  France,  de  Thou  (1553-1617)  wrote  in  Cice- 
ronian Latin  an  elaborate  history  of  his  own  times,  and 
Mezeray  (1610-1683)  published  a  history  of  France  in 
many  volumes  during  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV  to  display 
the  glory  and  the  services  to  France  of  the  French  mon- 
archy. 

The  attitude  towards  history  at  the  end  of  the  seven- 
teenth century  is  best  shown  in  the  "Discours  sur  I'His- 
toire  Universelle"  by  Bossuet  (1627-1704).     ■ 

During  the  eighteenth  century  the  predominance  of 
Literary  style  in  the  estimation  of  history  reaches  its  height ; 
the  typical  historian  is  Voltaire  (1694-1778),  whose  "Siecle 


.15 

de  Louis  XIV ' '  and  ' '  Histoire  de  Charles  XII ' '  are  models 
of  luminous  style  and  interesting  narration,  not  so  closely 
based  on  classical  rules  as  in  former  times;  the  influence 
of  Voltaire  broke  down  slavish  imitation  of  the  classics, 
while  maintaining  the  literary  theory  of  history. 

Iu_England  the  typical  writers  of  history  in  the  eight- 
eenth century  were  David  Hume  (1711-1776)  and  William 
Robertson  (1721-1793),  whose  works  are  mainly  of  value 
as  literajbiire. 

While  sty\e  became  the  test  of  the  historian,  the  anti- 
quarians devoted  themselves  to  collecting  and  editing  un- 
published materials  for  history;  of  these  antiquarians  the 
most  distinguished  were  Muratori  (1672-1750)  in  Italy, 
Leibnitz  (1646-1716)  in  Germany,  Dugdale  (1605-1686) 
in  England,  and  Sirmond  (1559-1651),  Labbe  (1607-1667), 
and  Dom  Bouquet  (1685-1754)  in  France. 

The  Benedictines  of  Saint  Maur  and  their  work;  foun- 
dation or  formulation  of  the  sciences  auxiliary  to  history; 
of  diplomatics  by  Dom  Jean  de  Mabillon  (1632-1707),  pa- 
leography by  Dom  Bernard  de  Montfaucon  (1655-1741), 
and  of  chronology  by  Dom  Clement  (1714—1793). 

BOOKS  EECOMMENDED. 
The  writings  of  the  authors  referred  to  in  this  lecture  are  easily 
accessible.  The  translation  of  Machiavelli 's  ''History  of  Florence," 
1872,  and  of  the  ''Discourses"  by  N.  H.  Thomson,  1883,  may  be 
recommended;  Barros,  de  Thou  and  Mezeray  have  not  been  trans- 
lated into  English.  Kaleigh's  "History  of  the  World"  fills  from 
Vols.  2  to  7  in  the  standard  edition  of  his  works,  1829,  and  Hobbes' 
"Behemoth"  is  contained  in  the  sixth  volume  of  Molesworth's  stand- 


16 
LECTURE  SIX. 

The  First  of  Modern  Historians:  Edward  Gibbon. 

It  was  during  the  eighteenth  century  when  history  was 
chiefly  regarded  as  a  branch  of  literature  and  not  of  schol- 
arship that  the  first  modern  historian,  who  foreshadowed 
the  methods  of  the  scientific  school  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury, published  the  only  historical  work  of  his  generation 
which  has  stood  the  test  of  time  and  criticism. 

Edward  Gibbon  (1737-1794)  :  his  education  and  career; 
his  preparation  for  historical  work ;  his  religious  and  polit- 
ical experiences  and  affiliations ;  his  social  success ;  his  rank 
as  a  man  of  letters;  his  membership  in  "The  Club"  with 
Burke,  Goldsmith,  and  Dr.  Johnson. 

The  publication  of  ' '  The  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman 
Empire"  in  three  parts,  1776,  1781,  and  1788;  the  motives 
as  given  by  himself  which  led  him  to  undertake  this  work ; 
the  material  at  his  disposal ;  his  method  of  using  it :  "I 
shall  content  myself  with  renewing  my  serious  protestation, 
that  I  have  always  endeavoured  to  draw  from  the  fountain- 
head;  that  my  curiosity  as  well  as  a  sense  of  duty,  has 
always  urged  me  to  study  the  originals;  and  that,  if  they 
have  sometimes  eluded  my  search,  I  have  carefully  marked 
the  secondary  evidence,  on  whose  faith  a  passage  or  a  fact 
were  reduced  to  depend." 

In  this  sentence  Gibbon  laid  down  the  law  which  is  held 
to-day  by  all  modern  historians ;  importance  of  this  rule. 

Gibbon 's  definition  of  the  chief  duties  of  the  historian  : 
"diligence  and  accuracy  are  the  only  merits  which  an  his- 
torical writer  may  ascribe  to  himself;  if  any  merit,  indeed, 
can  be  assumed  from  the  performance  of  an  indispensable 
duty.  I  may  therefore  be  allowed  to  say  that  I  have  care- 
fully examined  all  the  original  materials  that  could  illus- 
trate the  subject  which  I  have  undertaken  to  treat." 

"With  these  modern  ideas  Gibbon  combined  a  breadth  of 
treatment  that  has  never  been  rivaled;  the  scope  and  diffi- 
culty of  his  subject. 


17 


Gibbon 's  style ;  its  characteristic  excellence  is  the  lucid- 
ity which  was  the  aim  of  eighteenth  century  men  of  letters ; 
but  it  is  a  labored  style  and  contrasts  in  this  with  the  sim- 
plicity of  the  story  tellers,  like  Herodotus  and  Livy.  and 
of  his  contemporaries,  Voltaire  and  Goldsmith. 

Gibbon  formed  no  school  and  stands  alone  in  his  indica- 
tion of  the  principles  and  methods  to  be  adopted  in  the  nine- 
teenth century. 

Gibbon  himself  did  not  set  out  to  prove  any  political  or 
other  thesis,  but  his  own  and  the  succeeding  generation 
regarded  his  history  as  an  attack  on  Christianity,  and  it 
was  repeatedly  edited  by  Christian  divines,  like  H.  H.  Mil- 
man,  from  this  point  of  view ;  the  real  significance  of  Gib- 
bon's  religious  attitude. 

The  main  blemishes  in  Gibbon's  work,  as  tested  by  mod- 
ern criticism,  are  due  rather  to  lack  of  material  than  lack 
of  historical  appreciation;  they  are,  first,  his  failure  to 
understand  the  importance  of  the  Byzantine  empire  ;  second, 
his  ignoring  of  the  early  history  of  the  Slavonic  peoples; 
third,  his  secondary  and  conventional  account  of  the  rise  of 
Islam. 

Gibbon's  "Decline  and  Fall"  is  the  only  history  written 
in  the  eighteenth  century  which  is  still  cited  and  read  as 
an  historical  authority ;  causes  of  its  permanence  are  to  be 
found  in  its  methods  rather  than  in  its  style;  yet  Gibbon 
may  be  ranked  as  the  first  modern  historical  writer  who 
holds  a  place  both  in  history  and  in  literature. 

BOOKS   RECOMMENDED. 

The  only  good  modern  edition  of  Gibbon  is  edited  by  J.  B.  Bury, 
seven  volumes,  the  Macmillan  Company,  1897-99.  In  this  edition  the 
errors  of  detail  made  by  Gibbon  are  corrected  in  notes,  and  later  his- 
torical information  is  summed  up  in  a  series  of  appendices;  the  edi- 
tion is  reverent  and  not  captious.  On  Gibbon  as  a  man  of  letters 
see  the  volume  by  J.  Cotter  Morrison  in  the  "English  Men  of  Let- 
ters ' '  series. 


18 
LECTURE  SEVEN. 

The  Beginnings  of  Scientific  History:  Niebuhr, 
Ranke  and  Mignet;  the  publication  of  docu- 
ments. 

The  principles  which  Gibbon  laid  down  were  formulated 
by  two  famous  German  universitj^  professors,  who  deserve 
the  credit  of  founding  the  modern  scientific  school  of  his- 
torians. 

The  essential  part  of  their  work  was  in  bringing:  to- 
gether the  functions  of  the  historical  scholar,  the  historical 
critic,  and  the  historian,  and  in  pointing  out  the  methods  in 
which  scholars  and  critics  should  be  trained. 

Niebuhr  was  the  first  modern  historical  critic  and  Ranke 
the  first  modern  historical  scholar;  under  their  influence 
the  separation  between  scholar  and  writer  comes  to  an  end 
and  the  historian  ceased  to  be  regarded  only  as  a  man  of 
letters  and  estimated  only  by  his  literary  style. 

Barthold  Georg  Niebuhr  (1776-1831)  was  professor  of 
history  first  at  the  newly  founded  University  of  Berlin 
and  afterwards  at  the  University  of  Bonn ;  he  took  up  as 
his  life  work  the  task  of  writing  a  history  of  Rome  which 
should  end  where  Gibbon  began ;  comparison  between  the 
tasks  that  faced  him  and  Gibbon  owing  to  the  difference  of 
the  material  for  early  and  later  Roman  history;  Niebuhr 's 
importance  as  an  historical  critic;  first  edition  of  his  ''Ro- 
man History"  published  1811  and  second  in  1827-30;  his 
work  now  out  of  date  from  the  extent  of  new  material  dis- 
covered and  edited  since  his  time;  the  work  of  the  archae- 
ologists in  elucidating  early  Roman  history;  Niebuhr  now 
superseded  as  an  authority  by  Mommsen,  and  later  writers, 
but  the  importance  of  his  work  does  not  lie  in  his  pub- 
lished writings  so  much  as  in  the  influence  he  exerted  in 
founding  the  new  school  of  history. 

Leopold  von  Ranke  (1795-1886)  ;  his  career  as  a 
teacher;  most  of  the  modern  scientific  German  historians 


19 


trained  by  him;  his  work  as  a  scholar,  notably  in  the  brinc^- 
insi'  to  light  of  the  despatches  of  the  Venetian  ambassadors ; 
the  field  of  his  researches  was  the  difficult  period  of  the  six- 
teenth century  in  Europe,  including-  the  controversial  epoch 
of  the  Reformation;  published  his  ''History  of  Germany 
during  the  Reformation"  in  1839;  his  other  principal 
works:  the  "History  of  the  Popes,"  the  "History  of  the 
Religious  Wars  in  France,"  and  the  "History  of  Eng- 
land, principally  in  the  Seventeenth  Century";  in  his  later 
years  he  widened  his  range  and  took  up  the  idea  of  writing 
a  universal  history ;  importance  of  the  life  work  of  Ranke. 

F.  A.  Mignet  (1796-1884)  represents  to  some  degree 
the  contemporary  movement  in  CTCrmany  as  a  French  his- 
torian ;  his  work  was  objective  and  narrative ;  he  began  to 
write  history  before  he  became  a  scholar  and  published  his 
"Histoire  de  la  Revolution  Francaise"  in  1824;  he  then 
became  an  editor  of  documents  and  devoted  himself  to 
elaborate  studies  from  documents  upon  smaller  topics; 
]\Iignet  combined  with  scholarship  an  excellent  narrative 
style. 

Since  the  new  school  of  historians  could  not  work  with- 
out materials  their  influence  brought  about  the  beginning 
of  the  publication,  at  t;he_ expense  of  the_State,  of  private 
societies  and  of  individuals,  of  great  collections  of  docu- 
ments; in  editing  these  documents  scholars  were  trained 
and  the  w^ork  of  sound  scientific  history  made  possible: 
foundation  of  the  Ecole  des  Chartes  at  Paris,  1821 ;  com- 
mencement of  tlie  publication  in  England  of  the  works  of 
the  Record  Commission^  1802,  in  Germany  of  the  Monu- 
menta  Germaniae  Historica,  1826,  and  in  France  of  the 
Documents  inedits  sur  1 'Histoire  de  France,  1835. 

BOOKS   EECOMMENDED. 

The  best  translation  of  Xiebuhr's  ''History  of  Rome"  is  by  Hare 
and  Thirlwall,  five  volumes,  1828-45.  Most  of  Eanke's  works  have 
been  translated  into  English,  the  three  earlier  by  Sara  Austin  and 
the  ''History  of  England"  by  G.  W.  Kitehin  and  C.  W.  Boase,  in 


20 


six  volumes,  Oxford,  1875.  Translations  of  Mignet's  smaller  works 
can  be  found  in  the  Bohn  series.  Macaulay  wrote  a  review  of  Ranke  's 
'■ '  History  of  the  Popes, ' '  which  is  published  in  his  Essays,  and  throws 
a  curious  light  upon  both  writers. 


LECTURE  EIGHT. 

The  Philosophic  Historians:  Guizot,  Grote,  Carlyle. 

The  philosophy  of  history;  early  attempts  to  deduce  a 
law  from  the  progress  and  decay  of  races,  nations,  and  civ- 
ilizations ;  special  interest  taken  in  such  speculations  in  the 
eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries;  Montesquieu,  Kant, 
Hegel,  Auguste  Comte,  Buckle ;  application  of  the  ideas  of 
evolution. 

Necessary  inadequacy  of  all  philosophy  of  history  until 
the  facts  of  the  past  and  their  sequence  can  be  ascertained : 
not  until  scientific  historians  have  discovered  and  stated 
the  truth  as  to  the  past  can  the  philosophy  of  history  have 
any  sound  basis. 

Danger  in  historical  research  caused  by  any  philosoph- 
ical conviction  in  the  mind  of  the  historian ;  tendency  of 
the  human  mind  to  find  what  it  looks  for;  Ranke  in  his 
later  period. 

Instances  in  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  of 
historians,  whose  work  was  dominated  by  a  preconceived 
theory  of  civilization ;  contrast  between  them  and  the  polit- 
ical and  nationalist  historians,  who  sought  to  advocate  polit- 
ical and  nationalist  theories  through  their  histories. 

Francois  Guizot  (1787-1874)  ;  his  training;  his  career; 
his  services  to  scientific  history ;  his  liberalism ;  publication 
of  his  "Histoire  de  civilisation  en  Europe  et  en  France," 
1828-30 ;  later  editions ;  his  theories ;  his  narrative  histories. 

Other  French  philosophic  historians;  Edgar  Quinet 
(1803-1875);  Alexis  de  Tocqueville  (1805-1859). 

Philosophical  theories  brought  out  in  the  treatment  of 
ancient  history. 


21 


George  Grote  (1794-1871)  ;  publication  of  his  ''History 
of  Greece,"  1846-56;  influence  of  his  philosophical  and 
political  theories  in  his  treatment  of  Greek  history. 

Later  histories  of  Greece  based  on  archaeological  discov- 
eries and  scientific  treatment  of  material;  Adolph  Holm; 
Beloch. 

Subjective  and  objective  treatment  of  history ;  when  the 
writer  subordinates  his  treatment  of  past  events  to  fit  his 
personal  and  individual  views  of  philosophy,  his  position  as 
a  philosophic  historian  must  be  estimated  by  a  knowledge 
of  his  personality;  importance  of  discounting  such  his- 
tories as  histories. 

Thomas  Carlyle  (1795-1881),  the  best  example  of  the 
subjective  historian ;  his  philosophy  of  history ;  his  hero- 
worship  ;  danger  of  the  hero  theory ;  it  may  be  valuable 
ethically,  but  leads  to  a  false  perspective  of  history. 

Carlyle 's  works ;  published  his  ' '  French  Revolution ' '  in 
1837,  his  ''Oliver  Cromwell"  in  1845,  and  his  "Frederick 
the  Great"  from  1858  to  1864. 

Carlyle  the  type  of  the  unscientific  historian ;  his  ina- 
})ility  to  handle  material;  his  absence  of  critical  insight; 
his  prejudices;  his  preference  of  the  picturesque  over  the 
true;  his  intense  subjectivity. 

Carlyle 's  style  of  narration;  its  vivid  word-painting. 

Relations  between  history  and  biography;  the  psycho- 
logical biographers;  Taine's  "Napoleon"  a  good  example  of 
psychological  biography. 

BOOKS  RECOMMENDED. 
Guizot's  works  are  all  translated  in  the  Bohn  series.     Carlyle 's 
personality  is  well  described  in  his  life  by  Froude. 


22 


LECTURE  NINE. 

The  Political  Historians :  Hallam,  Macaulay,  Thiers, 
Droysen,  Bancroft. 

The  political  bias  is  more  common  among  historians 
than  the  philosophical,  which  includes  a  wider  range  and 
is  apt  to  be  ethical. 

From  Greek  and  Roman  times  much  history  has  been 
written  to  prove  political  theories,  as  by  Thucydides  and 
Tacitus,  to  the  prejudice  of  the  simple  truth. 

Many  modern  writers,  even  when  using  scientific  meth- 
ods of  research,  have  yet  been  warped  by  the  desire  to 
prove  the  excellence  of  certain  political  theories  or  to  bols- 
ter up  political  parties. 

This  has  been  particularly  the  case  during  the  nine- 
teenth century ;  comparison  between  political  and  national- 
ist historians. 

Sir  Archibald  Alison  (1792-1867)  may  be  regarded  as 
an  extreme  type ;  Lord  Beaconsfield  's  description  of  him  as 
' '  The  great  Mr.  Wordy,  who  wrote  a  History  of  Europe  in 
thirty  volumes  to  prove  that  Providence  was  on  the  side  of 
the  Tories." 

The   English  Whig  historians,   Hallam  and  Macaulay. 

Henry  Hallam  (1777-1869)  :  published  his  ''Constitu- 
tional History  of  England  from  1485  to  1760"  in  1827  to 
explain  the  Whig  theories  and  system  of  government ;  its 
merits  and  defects. 

Thomas  Babington  Macaulay  (1800-59)  ;  his  views  on 
history ;  ' '  History  begins  in  novel  and  ends  in  essay ' ' ; 
' '  History  is  a  compound  of  poetry  and  philosophy  " ;  "  Facts 
are  the  mere  dross  of  history. ' ' 

Macaulay 's  personality;  his  love  of  the  classics;  his 
strong  prejudices;  his  great  learning  and  lack  of  scientific 
training ;  his  rank  as  a  man  of  letters ;  his  oratorical  style ; 
Macaulay  as  orator  and  essayist. 


23 


Macaulay's  active  political  career;  his  political  convic- 
tions ;  their  effect  upon  his  historical  writings. 

Macaulay's  "History  of  England"  published  1848-58; 
effect  of  his  political  views  on  its  perspective;  an  apology 
for_the^  Whig  party  and  the  Revolution  of  1688 ;  his  atti- 
tude towards  William  III  and  the  Stuarts;  merits  and  de- 
fects of  Macaulay  as  a  historian ;  his  careful  study  of  epi- 
sodes like  the  siege  of  Londonderry ;  his  lack  of  proportion 
and  his  prejudices ;  excellence  of  his  narrative  style. 

Other  English  political  historians:  J.  R.  Seeley  (183-J^ 
1895)  ;  political  influence  of  his  "Expansion  of  England." 

The  political  historians  in  France ;  their  influence  on 
events;  eft'ect  of  their  studies  of  the  French  Revolution. 

Adolphe  Thiers  (1797-1877)  ;  his  active  career  as  a 
journalist  and  a  politician;  publication  of  his  "Histoire  de 
la  Revolution  Francaise"  1823-27,  and  of  his  "Histoire  du 
Consulat  et  de  1 'Empire"  1845-62;  effect  of  these  works; 
the  legend  of  Napoleon ;  clearness  of  Thiers '  narration, 
especially  of  military  canipaigns  and  battles. 

Other  French  political  historians;  Louis  Blanc  (1811- 
1882). 

German  political  historians ;  their  ^vork  for  the  unity  of 
Germany  under  the  leadership  of  the  House  of  Hohenzol- 
lern,  especially  after  1848;  attitude  of  Ranke  and  Treit- 
schke. 

Gustav  Droysen  (1808-84),  the  principal  German  polit- 
ical historian;  his  earlier  works;  his  "History  of  Prussian 
Politics,"  published  1855  to  1870;  his  monarchical  views; 
importance  of  his  work  and  his  scientific  method,  which 
was  more  marked  than  in  the  English  and  French  political 
historians. 

Other  German  political  historians:  Heinrich  von  Sybel 
(1817-1895). 

George  Bancroft  (1800-91),  the  representative  Ameri- 
can political  historian;  publication  of  his  "History  of  the 
United   States"   1834-75;   his  political  career  and   affilia- 


24 


tions :  influence  of  IMacanlay  upon  him ;  his  use  of  material ; 
his  national  and  political  prejudices. 

Tendencies  and  influence  of  political  historians. 

BOOKS  EECOMMENDED. 
The  histories  referred  to  in  this  lecture  are  generally  accessible. 
Thiers'  works  have  been   translated  into   English,  but  not  those   of 
Droysen. 


LECTURE  TEN. 

The    Nationalist   Historians:    Herculano,  Palacky, 
Martin,  Green,  and  Treitschke. 

The  growth  of  the  idea  of  nationality  in  the  nineteenth 
century;  its  efl'ect  upon  the  study  and  writing  of  history; 
its  tendency  to  enlist  the  patriotism  of  the  writer  and  warp 
his  impartiality. 

The  feeling  of  nationality  was  especially  strong  in  the 
smaller  nations,  which  had  been  great  in  the  past,  but  had 
become  second  rate  powers  under  modern  conditions. 
/  Alexandra  Herculano  (1810-77),  the  greatest  historian 
\  I  of  Portugal,  may  be  taken  as  one  representative  of  this 
\  I  movement;  his  career;  his  scientific  method;  his  work  in 
editing  documents;  his  "History  of  Portugal,"  published 
from  1848  to  1853,  and  his  "History  of  the  Inquisition  in 
Portugal ' '  from  1859  to  1863 ;  effect  of  his  work ;  over- 
throw of  the  Iberianist  idea. 

Franz  Palacky  (1798-1876)  may  be  taken  as  represent- 
/  ing  another  small  nation;  his  "History  of  the  Bohemian 
People, ' '  published  from  1836  to  1876 ;  its  intense  nation- 
alism ;  its  reconstruction  of  the  early  Bohemian  history ;  its 
scientific  form  and  method;  importance  of  Palacky 's  polit- 
ical ideas  and  his  influence  upon  the  Czech  revival. 

The  work  of  the  small  nations  in  history,  and  especially 
in  the  publication  of  documents  on  their  early  history; 
Poland.  Finland,  Denmark,  and  Eomania. 


In  large  nations  the  effect  of  the  national  idea  is  to  be 
seen  in  attempts  to  identify  a  distinctively  national  spirit 
running  through  the  whole  course  of  a  nation's  history,  as 
in  ]\Iartin  and  Green,  or  in  attempts  to  prove  a  national 
spirit  in  spite  of  political  division,  as  in  Treitschke. 

Henri  Martin  (1810-83),  published  the  first  edition  of 
his  "Histoire  de  France"  in  1833-34,  and  the  third  in 
1855-60;  his  effort  to  find  the  key  to  French  history  in 
Celtic  ideas,  the  esprit  gaulois;  simplicity  of  his  narrative. 

Other  French  writers  of  this  national  type,  notably 
Augustin  Thierry   (1795-1856.) 

John  Richard  Green  (1837-83)  shows  a  similar  spirit 
in  his  "Short  History  of  the  English  People,"  published  in 
1874;  his  persistence  in  dwelling  on  the  Teutonic  element 
in  early  English  history;  his  recognition  of  national  as 
opposed  to  political  history. 

Other  English  writers  of  this  school  are  J.  M.  Kemble 
(1807-57)    and  E.  A.  Freeman    (1823-92). 

In  Germany  the  longing  for  German  national  unity  is 
shown  particularly  in  Heinrich  Treitschke  (1834-96), 
whose  teaching  of  history  in  Berlin  University,  and  whose 
''German  History  in  the  Nineteenth  Century,"  had  a 
great  influence  in  promoting  the  belief  in  the  historic  unity 
of  the  German  people. 

BOOKS  RECOMMENDED. 
For  the  English  members  of  this  school  see  ''Life  and  Letters  of 
E.  A.  Freeman,"  by  W.  E.  W.  Stephens,  1895,  and* 'Letters  of  J.  R. 
Green,"  edited  by  Leslie  Stephen,  1901. 


26 
LECTURE  ELEVEN. 

The  Romantic  Historians:  Lamartine,  Michelet, 
Froude,  Motley,  Prescott,  and  Parkman;  the 
Place  of  Historical  Fiction:   Scott  and  Dumas. 

A  group  of  historical  writers  in  the  middle  of  the  nine- 
tenth  century,  who  were  attracted  to  history  writing  by 
the  fascination  exercised  over  them  by  certain  topics  and 
ideas  and  who  were  more  subjective  than  objective,  may 
be  termed  the  romantic  historians. 

They  were  all  distinguished  men  of  letters  and  wrote 
in  an  effective  style,  and  paid  more  attention  to  the  manner 
of  telling  their  story  than  to  the  matter  of  it. 

They  frankly  avowed  their  sympathies  and  did  not 
aim  at  impartiality. 

They  were  historical  writers  rather  than  historical 
scholars,  and  were  influenced  in  the  form  of  their  works 
and  in  their  desire  to  reproduce  the  atmosphere  of  the  past 
by  the  great  historical  novelists. 

Alphonse  de  Lamartine  (1792-1869)  may  be  taken  as 
the  type  of  this  school  of  writers  in  France;  his  "Histoire 
des  Girondins"  published  in  1847;  his  historical  style;  his 
graphic  power ;  his  lack  of  historical  scholarship. 

Jules  Michelet  (1798-1874)  has  also  some  of  the  char- 
acteristics of  the  philosophic  and  nationalist  historians ;  his 
idealization  of  the  French  people;  his  insight;  his  concep- 
tion of  universal  history;  but  he  is  brought  into  the  same 
group  as  Lamartine  by  the  subjectivity  of  his  style  and  the 
absence  of  patient  research  or  critical  appreciation  of 
documents;  comparison  with  Carlyle. 

In    England   James    Anthony    Froude    (1818-94)    be- 
longed to  this   group;  his  inability   to   grasp  the   truth 
Froudacity,   not   mendacity;    controversy   with   Freeman 
beauty  of  his  narrative  style;  comparison  with  Macaulay 
his  ''History  of  England  from  1529  to  1603"  in  twelve 
volumes,  published  from  1857  to  1870. 


27 


In  the  United  States  Motley  and  Prescott  belong  to  the 
romantic  school,  and  Parkman  in  his  early  works. 

John  Lothrop  Motley  (181-^77)  ;  publication  of  his 
"Rise  and  Progress  of  the  Dutch  Republic,"  1857,  and  of 
his  ''History  of  the  United  Netherlands,"  1860-67;  his 
epic  treatment  of  his  subject;  refused  to  see  the  Spanish 
side;  deliberate  advocacy  of  the  Dutch  cause;  comparison 
with  Macaulay. 

William  Hickling  Prescott  (1796-1859)  also  belongs  to 
the  romantic  school;  his  characteristic  works  are  the 
"Conquest  of  Mexico"  published  in  1843  and  the  "Con- 
quest of  Peru"  published  in  1847;  brilliancy  of  their  style, 
but  absence  of  critical  appreciation  of  material. 

Francis  Parkman  (1822-1893)  published  in  a  long 
series  of  volumes  between  1849  and  1892  his  "France  and 
England  in  the  New  World";  in  the  earlier  volumes, 
especially  in  "The  Conspiracy  of  Pontiac, "  he  shows  him- 
self a  romantic  historian,  but  as  he  continued  his  methods 
became  more  rigorously  scientific  and  his  research  more 
thorough,  so  that  his  later  volumes  "Montcalm  and 
Wolfe"  and  "A  Half -century  of  Conflict"  belong  dis- 
tinctly to  the  modern  scientific  school. 

The  success  of  the  great  historical  novelists  affected  both 
the  attitude  toward  history  and  the  style  of  the  romantic 
historians;  the  widespread  influence  of  Sir  Walter  Scott 
and  Alexandre  Dumas ;  the  interest  aroused  in  the  past  by 
their  skilful  and  lively  narratives. 

The  importance  of  historical  fiction  in  giving  an  in- 
terest to  history;  it  should  be  judged  by  the  truth  of  its 
atmosphere  of  past  times  and  not  by  its  treatment  of  his- 
toric facts  and  personages;  historical  fiction  owing  to  its 
absence  of  pretence  to  tell  the  whole  truth  is  less  dangerous 
than  biased  and  inaccurate  histories,  which  purport  to  tell 
the  whole  truth. 

Inferiority  of  later  historical  novelists  to  Scott  and 
Dumas. 


28 
LECTURE  TWELVE. 

The  Modern  Scientific  Historians :  Fustel  de  Coulan- 
ges,  Aulard,  Stubbs,  Gardiner,  Lea,  and  Henry 
Adams. 

Side  by  side  with  the  philosophic,  the  political,  the 
nationalist,  and  the  romantic  groups  of  historical  writers 
developed  the  modern  scientific  school ;  some  of  the  former 
used  scientific  methods,  such  as  Hallam  in  England,  Droy- 
sen  in  Germany,  Martin  in  France,  and  Parkman  in  the 
United  States,  but  their  professed  aims  and  their  desire  to 
draw  conclusions  place  them  with  the  former  groups. 

Most  of  the  scientific  historians  drew  their  inspiration 
from  Germany,  and  many  of  them  were  pupils  of  Ranke 
and  other  professors  in  the  German  universities ;  Germany 
first  provided  regular  university  training  in  scientific  his- 
tory, and  the  scientific  school  is  sometimes  termed  the 
German  school. 

But  these  trained  scholars  tended  to  become  editors  of 
.documents  and  writers  of  monographs,  rather  than  his- 
torians; excellence  of  German  work  along  these  lines;  the 
science  of  editing  documents. 

The  aim  of  the  scientific  school  to  discover  the  truth 
with  regard  to  the  past  and  to  state  it  clearly,  without 
trying  to  prove  a  theory  or  to  justify  a  policy;  diligence 
in  research  the  first  duty  of  a  scientific  historian,  trained 
critical  appreciation  of  all  possible  material  the  second, 
and  impartial  statement  of  conclusions  the  third;  the  his- 
torical scholar,  the  historical  critic  and  the  historian. 

The  scientific  historian  is  dependent  upon  the  work  of 
the  scholar  and  the  critic  for  the  knowledge  of  his  primary 
authorities,  on  which  alone  he  can  base  his  narrative;  all 
scientific  historians  are  also  scholars  and  critics,  but  all 
scholars  and  critics  are  not  historians. 

The  most  distinguished  scientific  historians  at  the  pres- 
ent time  are  not  Germans,  though  Germany  led  the  way 
with  Niebuhr  and  Ranke. 


29 


Importance  of  France  in  developino;  the  scientific  con- 
ception and  methods  of  history;  importance  of  the  work 
done  by  the  Ecole  des  Chartes;  the  most  readable  and 
thorongh  statement  of  the  aim  and  methods  of  scientific 
history  is  Langiois  and  Seignobos'  ' '  Introdnction  to  the  ' 
Study  of  History." 

Two  representative  modern  French  scientific  historians    ' 
are  Fustel  de  Coulanges  and  Aiilard. 

Fnstel  de  Coulanges  (1830-1889)  ;  published  "La  Cite 
Antique"  in  1864,  and  ''Histoire  des  Institutions  Politiques 
de  1  'Ancienne  France ' '  from  1875  to  1889 ;  his  greatness  as 
a  scholar;  rigour  of  his  method. 

F.  Alphonse  Aulard  (b.  1849)  ;  his  work  as  an  editor  \ 
of  dofiiiroents  on  the  French  Revolution,  especially  of  the  j 
''Actes  du  Comite  de  Salut  Public";  his  "Culte  de  I'Etre  , 
Supreme"  1894,  and  "Histoire  Politique  de  la  Revolution  / 
Francaise,"  1901;  entire  rewriting  of  the  history  of  the  P 
French  Revolution  on  the  basis  of  primary  authorities. 

.William  Stubbs  ( 1 825-1 90£),  Bishop  of  Oxford,  the 
founder  of  scientific  history  in  England ;  his  work  as 
teacher,  when  Regius  Professor~of  Modern  History  at 
O^ord,  1866-84;  his  work  as  scholar  in  editing  medieval 
chronicles,  especially  his  "Memorials  of  St.  Dunstan";  his 
greatest  work  "The  Constitutional  History  of  England"  \ 
published  from  1874  to  1878. 

^amuel    Rawson    Gardiner     (1829-1902)     ranks    with 
Stubbs   as   a   scientific   historian;   difference   in   his   work 
owing  to  the  different  character  of  his  material;  his  "His-  \ 
tory  of  England  from  1603  to  1656"  published  between/ 
1863  and  1901.  \ 

Other  English  scientific  historians,  notably  F.  W. 
Maitland,  JJH.J?oiind,  C-  H.  Firth,  and  James  Bryce. 

Scientific  history  in  the  United  States;  its  late  begin- 
ning; difficulty  in  obtaining  and  arranging  material. 

Henry  Charles  Lea  (born  1825)  ;  published  "History  of 
the  Inquisition,"  1889,  "History  of  Confessions  and  In- 


30 


dulgences,"  1896,  and  ''The  Moriscos  of  Spain,"  1901; 
greatness  of  his  work  and  soundness  of  his  method. 

Henry  Adams  (born  1838)  ;  his  influence  as  a  teacher, 
when  professor  at  Harvard,  1870-77;  published  "A  History 
of  the  United  States  under  the  Administrations  of  Jeffer- 
son and  Madison ' '  in  nine  volumes,  1889-91 ;  thoroughness 
of  his  research,  excellence  of  his  criticism  and  clearness  of 
his  style. 

Other  American  historians  of  the  modern  school ;  Cap- 
tain .A.  T.  Mahan  and  James  Ford  Rhodes. 

Prospects  of  scientific  history  in  the  United  States. 

BOOKS  EECOMMENDED. 

There  is  a  translation  of  Langlois  and  Seignobos  ' '  Introduction 
to  the  Study  of  History,"  by  G.  G.  Berry,  published  by  Henry  Holt 
&  Co.,  1893. 


DEPARTMENT   OF   UNIVERSITY   EXTENSION. 


LIST  OF  SYLLABUSES  OF  COUESES  OF  TWELVE  LECTURES. 

1.— History  of  the  French  Revolution,  by  H.  Morse  Stephens. 
2.  — History  and  Literature  of  Russia,  by  Jerome  B.  Landfield. 
3.— History  and  Historians,  by  H.  Morse  Stephens. 
4.— The  Renaissance  in  Italy,  by  Garrick  Mallory  Borden. 
5.— History  of  Music,  by  Garrick  Mallory  Borden. 

6.  — The  Napoleonic  Period  in  Euroi:)e,  by  H.  Morse  Stephens, 

7.  — The  Victorian  Poets,  by  Frederick  J.  Teggart. 
8.— History  of  Trade  Unionism,  by  Carleton  Parker. 

9.  — The  Enlightened  Despotism  of  the  Eighteenth  Century  in  Europe, 

by  H.  Morse  Stephens. 

10.  — The  Rise  and  Fall  of  the  Spanish  Power  in  Europe  and  America, 

by  Don  E.  Smith. 

Copies  of  any  of  these  syllabuses  and  of  the  circular  describing 
the  system  of  University  Extension  can  be  obtained  upon  application 
to  the  Secretary  for  University  Extension,  University  of  California, 
Berkeley,  California. 


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